technobot

Agree with Biscuit. I articulated poorly: I'm not a Whaley fan, but at the same time he was the best by default. Middle age has made all the memories of the drought blur into one hazy nightmare, but Whaley's drafts felt different because we actually hit on a pick or two each year. Levy-Brandon-Nix (and yes Nix is Whaley) had lowered my hopes to the point I just wanted a first/second round pick to pan out and stick, nevermind become a star. This is why McBeane feels next level, because they seem to consistently hit at the top of the draft and find gems in the middle/late rounds. But there have certainly been mistakes. My blame for not building a culture is a shot at ownership: Wilson/Brandon as hand-of-Wilson/and of course the Pegulas. Pairing a GM and head coach who aren't aligned was decided by the level above Whaley.

My memories of Whaley are mixed. On one hand there were some nice picks, and Hughes for Sheppard/McCoy for Alonso demonstrated his pro personnel chops. There were some value bin pickups as well as some nice draft picks and I'm even thinking of a Preston Brown who wasn't a star by any means but was solid and made it to his second contract. Think about it, the bar is that low for the entire drought: the elite group of Bills draft picks who went on to have a career in this league, usually outside of Buffalo. I digress. He was decent (above average?) at scouting college and pro personnel. As much as I didn't like the Watkins trade much of it is hindsight and I think most of us can agree that Watkins has a high ceiling (which he will probably never reach). Much like the current guy, Whaley also liked to call his shots and take them; he wasn't afraid of risky moves if he was "fired up" about a guy. Where I will knock him is his apparent lack of strategy, i.e. he handled the draft and in-season waiver transactions in an acceptable manner, but lacked any clear strategy to build a roster and manage the cap with any plan for sustainability. He liked to say he wanted to "stack drafts" and pile talent on top of each other but everyone says a variation of this and it never happened. Many of you are much more knowledgeable about the college and pro game than I am so I will defer to you but I'm just looking at the results of who stayed, who we extended, and who we couldn't afford to keep. His tactics were generally sound but managing the cap/building the roster was an obvious strategic deficiency. A failure of the entire front office, the coaching regimes and ownership for that matter was the inability to build a culture. Even with solid citizen/pantheon Buffalo Bills like Kyle Williams, Eric Wood and Fred Jackson leading the way, there was no culture established except one of mediocrity and missing the playoffs. The Bills were never outright trash and thus never earned the best lottery pick, but they never good enough to seriously think about the post-season. Thus, any positive influences couldn't contain bad apples; this isn't to sing McBeane's culture/we are family praises, but the league cares about winning and a winning locker room can absorb problem children. The Bills never had the luxury of this kind of cultural foundation; they might finally have it going into next season. The juggernaut 2014 Bills, much lauded for their defense and being (by default) the best team in a historically inept run, were indicative of this. The numbers looked nice but they weren't good enough to win games that mattered, when it mattered. Beating the Patriots B-team sans Brady on the last game of the season, despite being in Foxborough, doesn't count for me. But Whales deserves credit for this team, the dandelion in a field of weeds. And in his defense, he needed somebody above, whether it was Brandon on behalf of Wilson or the Pegulas, to step in and make it clear that the head coach and GM HAVE to work together, under threat of torture, or both of them would be burned at the stake. Pure conjecture but I'll blame Brandon for that; he was the defacto "owner" during Whaley's tenure and could have done more to build that culture from the top down, because that's where it starts. And to reiterate, I have no proof this occurred, but I've seen nothing to indicate Brandon cared about anything other than selling tickets, despite saying all the right things.

No need to worry. McBeane have already planned for the worst. The contingency plan for Diggs is the same as it was for AB. If Diggs acts up, he'll be called into a one one one meeting with our fearless coach, in an empty gymnasium containing a wrestling mat. McD will end it in the first minute with a triangle choke.

Brandon Beane, the hero Buffalo deserves. At worst, signings like this and Gaines improve depth and the bottom of the roster. If Williams returns to form, the Bills could add another core piece and solidfy the o-line. Kudos for setting themselves up for the draft, 2 years in a row.

Take care, and sorry for you and your family.

I agree, Shaw. Since 2018 they've gone from bottom tier offense/offensive line to solid (if unspectacular) offensive line and poor (but not scraping the bottom) offense in 2019. So far in 2020, the pieces are in place. I concur with the need for the 2 in a 1-2 punch involving Singletary, and it would be nice to add least add some tackle depth before the draft which I'm sure they'll do. It's probably wishful optimist thinking but I also feel the Bills have at least the foundation of not just a decent offense, but a powerful one. As everyone has said before me, it's all on Allen. If he makes the same jump he made from year 1 - 2 in year 3, we have a QB that we can stay the course with. With Diggs is in the picture, if Allen masters the deep throw (or at least is in coin flip territory) he will become a freak. Cheat code enabled. Many ifs but Singletary and especially Knox might take a bigger step this year. Were Knox to become a reliable target... I understand some of the frustration with Daboll, but it seemed like in every game this year there were multiple shots downfield with a receiver open that Allen or the receiver didn't convert. More egregious was the playoff loss where there were several throws at the end of the game and I don't want to blame the receiver, but have to wonder if Diggs makes those catches.

A We got a #1 receiver. He might not be a top 5 WR1 or even top 10 but I don't think it matters. Giving up our 1RD? I'll wager we win for the first 2 maybe 3 years, and that's assuming whoever we picked would become better than Diggs. There's no guarantee we hit on the 5th/6th this year, the onus is on MIN to do so. The outrage over us giving up a 5th/6th in addition to this year's 1st and next year's 4th is a little over the top. By the same token the praise for MIN getting a massive haul seems a little premature. Sure it's a bunch of picks/scratch tickets but there seems to be an expectation that you turn these day 3 picks into dependable starters, let alone stars.

Love the trade. No guarantees in life but I'm very optimistic about the results. There's always an inherent risk with these things but we're getting a proven talent who can make Josh better NOW. It would have been nice to draft "our" guy and groom him from the start but just like nothing says this will work out (or won't spontaneously combust in the Bills' faces), there's no certainty the player drafted in the first round would be as good as Diggs. The 5th and the 6th rounders were fodder given the roster depth this year. I'm all for another crack at the draft lottery but there's no guarantees and certainly no knowing that they could have packaged for a trade up. If the draft is as deep as "they" say, then we can get our WR to groom on day 2. We've got the cap room and assuming the guy isn't a nutbar then we've just added a core piece, the thing we were all clamouring for: that proven #1 receiver. And we didn't wildly overpay like we would have had to for Cooper (assuming he would have even answered the phone). The future is now, shots fired. Beane said (paraphrasing) "we want Josh to succeed and we want him to get paid that next big contract". Well, Josh. Get er done, I'm certain you can get it done. And here I thought patting the Bills FO on the back for a smart/value/roleplayer signing in AJ Klein would be the highlight of FA Day One.

Did "it" just get real?

Agree. They even joked about it, that they've got their own ideas. When asked what happens when they disagree, McDermott mentioned settling it on the wrestling mat.

I agree it's interesting. Terry Pegula alluded to this when asked about the hiring process, i.e. that McDermott's reported influence was greatly exaggerated. John Kryk wrote about it, take it for what it's worth (I like him, I can get some additional Bills info in some of the local Canadian papers) https://torontosun.com/2017/05/12/theres-not-a-czar-around-here-new-bills-gm-coach-duo-promise-collaboration/wcm/d396de9b-4e1d-456d-b713-11a95d494756 "What’s more, Terry Pegula insisted that in the GM interview process, “Sean’s involvement” amounted to nothing more than “writing a name on a piece of paper,” and that McDermott even “wrote seven or eight names.” Maybe Terry was telling the truth all along, and the talking heads made up their own version of the story: McDermott is the overlord of the Buffalo Bills and Beane is his handpicked head scout. McDermott and Beane have both denied this, and have insisted it's a partnership and collaboration and they won't agree about everything, but they are definitely aligned. At the same time they haven't wasted their time continuously refuting a narrative that the media might or might not have made up. I always thought it would make sense that McDermott would suggest people who he trusted, respected, and knew he could work with. And the Pegulas, having seen what happened with Whaley/Ryan, would obviously want the GM and HC to work together, with a unified vision. And thanks, Yolo, for the link. Great conversation and insight.

I understand the desire to draft and develop a guy (or guys) they like, and have him on the cheap for 4-5 years. Sounds reasonable to me. However, I have to agree with the people saying go for it. Unless we know for sure he is a locker room problem (and I don't see evidence he is) then this is an opportunity to add an elite player to the offense which can only help Allen. Having Diggs as the #1 also makes Brown and Beasley better. I see all the buzz that the draft is loaded with WR talent and I'll defer to the experts. But as stated by others, the draft is still a crapshoot. The guy we get in the first round? We *HOPE* he becomes a Stefon Diggs. To add a talent like this, who has several years left on a reasonable contract (and who will be an absolute bargain this year)... I don't think you can pass it up unless it becomes a bidding war. It would also prevent New England from landing him. I do believe this has leaked to get the interest started early, like intentionally listing a house under its value. For all our sake it's fortunate I'm not the GM of the Bills but assuming he's not a headcase/has an undisclosed injury, I'd offer a 1st round plus. Crazy as it sounds, but my logic is stated above: we'd be good and extremely lucky if whomever we picked in the first becomes as good or better than Diggs. In a dream world where this happens, I still hope they get that big body, redzone nightmare project later in the draft.

Allen will get all the love if he can improve his deep ball accuracy. The kid is a playmaker missing a big part of the game to make him a complete weapon. I think we all agree he's never going to be Mr Hyper Accurate; I don't think he needs to. Between his arm, hitting the deep ball, and his running, his ceiling is high indeed. Getting him a "catch anything in his vicinity" type would help immensely (sorry for the Captain Obvious observation since that type of receiver helps any quarterback) but Allen moreso. It was a little shocking watching him miss so many earlier in the year; it's frustrating as well since many of those throws are probably touchdowns. There's no guarantees but if Jordan Palmer is right (let's face it his job is to say everything is going to be AWESOME), then Allen makes a quantum leap this year and those misses/near misses become touchdowns or at least easy red zone opportunities. He could finish in the 30+ TD passes range, along with whatever he runs for; this puts him in Lamar Jackson territory. If that happens (big if) it will be amusing to watch the analysts trip over themselves to correct their takes. Or in the case of Football Outsiders: to come up with increasingly outrageous reasons why it's all a mirage and Josh is still a scrub.

Some guys just have *it* in big moments. Oliver had a great game against Dallas on (American) Thanksgiving in front of a national audience, and he does the same thing here on the first Sunday night game in 12 years. Tre White is another star who seems to have a cheat mode switch in hype games. It's way early and it might be variance but (hopefully) this bodes well for the future.

I was telling the wife that I'm sour but at least it's because my expectations are higher. Hanging in there against a premier team isn't enough, I need the W. I feel they're on the right track.

It's interesting to see what other fans, specifically Carolina fans, might think about our head coach/GM combo: https://www.carolinahuddle.com/boards/topic/160812-sean-mcdermott-brandon-beane/

Sorry, it's a terrible loss and I hope you're doing OK.

The Athletic: 10. Buffalo Bills (9-3; Last week: 10) If most of the country wasn’t paying attention to the Bills’ playoff potential, it certainly is now. That’s what beating the Cowboys on Thanksgiving will do. The Bills have a tough stretch coming up (Ravens, Steelers and Patriots in the next three weeks) as they try to catch New England in the AFC East, but the fact we’re even talking about that as a possibility is huge for Buffalo.

The greatest coach, let alone defensive coach, in NFL history couldn't wait to offer Gilmore a giant contract. What happened since comes as no surprise.

Nice post, OP. We've seen good defense during the stretch of mediocrity, and while it's still early, I don't think we've seen a defense like this. The Pats game really stood out to me. We've seen the movie a million times before in years past, the defense plays heroically for the most part all game and by the last third of the fourth quarter, the big runs by the opponent start. It's obvious our defense is gassed and they can't keep up anymore. It didn't happen this year. The defense shut down the Pats again, got the ball back for the offense, and we just couldn't close the deal. But the defense came through and stayed strong until the end. Watching the end of yesterday's game, it felt like there were a couple blips leading to big plays and a touchdown, but the defense was so stout all game. There was no surprise when the D shut the door on TEN yet again. Gunner made a good point about turnovers; we haven't even had a bunch. We're just playing strong defense throughout the game, and adjusting where necessary. Barring another nightmare Bills collapse, we're witnessing something new (a truly elite/dominant defense) and it can actually get better (we start getting more turnovers). This kind of recipe (shutdown defense with a ball control offense and reliable special teams) is still very tightrope, with little room for error. Some years, you get none of the breaks and finish 7-9/6-10 despite having a historical defense. But other years, the schedule/sequence of league injuries COMPLETELY goes your way, and out of nowhere a team goes 13-3. This could be that year for them. Not saying it will happen but heading into the bye, I'm loving my Bills.

Thanks for the synopsis. This regime knows how to identify, draft and develop defense. It's a shame about Horrible Harry, it looks like he was a breakout candidate this year. I hope he comes back stronger than ever next year. What's exciting is that this defense should be even better next year... take that, NFL! We will have a (hopefully) healthy H Phillips, E Oliver Year Two and Edmunds becoming elite. No guarantees but the future seems bright(er).

This to me will be the true marker of whether this is a new era or same old Bills. We've seen quick starts before only to be let down as the Bills lose to the Bengals or some other mediocre/trash team. They should beat the Dolphins twice and the Jets again for that matter, but until it happens I'm still a little nervous. To be a great team they need to be able to consistently beat good teams, but to be a good team they need to take care of business in the games "they should win". Still a far way from being able to say "they've arrived" but a sweep/near sweep of the trash would be a great start.

Dang... usually will have this edited but you caught me. I still edited it.

Agree with the "will miss Kelso" sentiment, I liked him and loved hearing stories about the glory days. His frothing at the mouth last year, exhorting the Bills to clear the benches was legendary. But I would also like an offensive player's take; will be interesting to hear Wood's (possibly) critique/analyze our current line and QB's progression. Wood is a "modern" player and will (hopefully) share some insight about the current regime considering he was at ground zero for "PROCESS: YEAR ONE". And Beane/McDermott obviously liked him enough to give him an extension almost immediately, bizarre non-retirement retirement press conference notwithstanding.

Rest well, Pancho. My thoughts go out to your family. You went too soon.